Bottle-cap.



A. L. BERNARDlN.

BOTTLE CAP.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 15, 1917.

1,244,413. Patented Oct. 23,1917.

ALFRED I BERNABDIN, or nvrmsvmn, mime.

Bowman-car.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Got. 23, 191?.

Application filed March 6, 1917. Serial No. 152,692.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALFRED L. BERNARDIN, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Evansville, in the county of Vanderburg and State ofIndiana, have made certain new and useful Improvements in Bottie-Caps,of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates generally to bottle caps and moreparticularly to bottle caps for catsup bottles and the like, my primaryobject being to provide a bottle cap capable of sealing a bottle such asa catsup bottle, in the first instance, and of use as the ordinaryscrewcap during the gradual using of the contents of the bottle after openingthereof and breaking of the seal.

In carrying out these objects in such manner as to bring about theadvantage to be hereinafter specified over bottle caps of generallysimilar nature, I provide the bottle in connection with which the cap isto be used with an annular shoulder below the threads thereof, and Iprovide a cap having threads capable of engagement with the threads ofthe bottle in such manner as to completely pass the bottle threads whenfirmly in position, the cap having an internal sealing member forengagement with the bottle mouth. Thus the cap is capable of inwardmovement on the bottle neck under pressure to compress the sealingmember, which carrice the cap threads substantially beyond the threadsof the bottle neck, the cap having at its inner end an extension thefree edge of which is bendable into engagement with the inner edge ofthe shoulder of the bottle neck so as to thus hold the cap in position,and at the same time providing for the breaking of the seal by removalof said extension and the subsequent use of the cap in cooperation withthe threads of the bottle during the gradual use of the contents 'ofsaid bottle, as ordinarily.

The invention consists in certain novel constructions, arrangements andcombinations of parts as well as in the method of sealing as will behereinafter more fully described and claimed.

Referring now tothe accompanying draw.

ing illustrating my impr vements,

constructed for the use of my improvements.

In regard to the construction provided in my present invention it wouldappear that the cap with the sealing device connected therein is fittedto the neck of the bottle and is initially interlocked therein by meansof screw threads. Thereafter pressure. is applied to any desired extentindependent of the screw thread action by means of a plunger 18 or inany other suitable manner and the sealing disk is compressed upon thelip of the bottle neck. This compressing action or sealing action itwill be noticed is secured independent of the screw thread action andwhen the disk is under this pressure it is locked to the neck of thebottle by bending the lower end of the cap beneath the annular shoulder.I thus have a process wherein the cap containing the seal is initiallyinterlocked with the bottle, the

cap and sealing disk is subsequently submitted to pressure independentof the interlocking means and thereafter. the cap is locked on the neckof the bottle by bending its lower end beneath the annular shoulder.This is advantageous in that I am able to secure a strong sealingpressure and after the bottle has been unlocked by opening or otherwisereleasing the portion in engagement with the shoulder the interlockingmeans may be utilized to temporarily secure the cap in place during theuse of the invention.

Referring now to these figures, and particularly to Fig. 5, I provide abottle neck indicated at 10 and having threads 11 below its mouth 12,with an annular shoulder 13 below the said threads 11 for the particularpurpose to be presently described.

The cap 14: provided by my invention may be formed. of the usual stifiorhard metal 17 engageab and has an inner sealing member 15 against itstop 16, this sealing member being either in the form of a disk as shownor a ring, for engagement of the mouth of the bottle as clearlyindicated in Figs. 2 and 3, and may be constructed of various materialssuitable in the formation of an air and liquid tight joint, the cahaving intermediate threads 1% with and completely beyond the bottleneck threads 11' so as to thus clearly adapt the cap threads 17 formovement with the cap beyond the bottle neck threads when pressure isapplied, for instance by a pressure member 18 as seen in Fig. 3, in asuitable machine for this purpose, the action of which forces the capinwardly upon the bottle neck, and compresses the sealing member 15against the bottle mouth 12. 7

At its inner edge the cap as thus far described has an extension band 19which is preferably formed of comparatively soft metal in order to adaptthe inner free edge thereof to be flanged or rolled beneath the innerlower edge of the bottle neck shoulder 13 as seen at 20 in Fig. 3, theopposite edge of the said extension being connected to the lower inneredge of the cap by a seam 21 which may be of any suitable type as forinstance, an inter-folded seam or. a lap joint seam, but which ispreferably of the bead seam type as shown in Figs. 2 and 3 in order thatthe cap will, upon complete removal of the band, remain as the usualcapfor application and re-application to the bottle neck in the regularway.

The ends of the band 19 are preferably joined by an inter-folded seal asseen at 22 1n Fig. 1 in particular, one end of the band having a tongue23 projecting beyond the scam in order to provide for ready and.complete ripping or tearing of the relatively soft band completely fromthe cap and from engagement with the bottle neck shoulder 13 in breakingthe seal in the first instance.

When formed of a soft metal as described however, the band may bereadily cut away from the bottle neck shoulder and a pro jecting tonguesuch as the tongue 23 as described may be done away with.

It is obvious from the foregoing that in the sealing process the cap 14is applied to the bottle by hand and screwed down so that the threads ofthe cap not only engage with the threads of the bottle neck, but passthe same. The bottle head is then placed under a suitable machineincluding the pressure member 18 of Fig. 3, that compresses the sealingmember 15 and the lower free edge of the band 19 is rolled around thelower edge ofthe bottleneck shoulder 13 during the time the pressure isbeing applied, thus securely fastening the entire cap in sealedposition; This seal is broken when the package is opened by tearing awayemma the soft metal band 19 which leaves nothing. but the screw cap sothat the latter can be taken of? and re-applied during the use of thecontents of the bottle in the regular way.

It is obvious that by thus providing an extended band at the inner endof the cap connected by a seam to the cap, will avoid the necessity ofmaking the entireocap from soft metal and consequently effect aconsiderable saving in cost of the complete cap, and that for thisreason as well as the combined structural features otherwise described,I am enabled to provide a simple, inexpensive closure which combines aseal and a screw cap for: use upon bottles the contents of which areemptied gradually, and whichtherefore require a protecting'closureduring the use of the contents as well as an initial seal.

It is obvious furthermore that by the construction of a combined deviceof the character specified, I am enabled to entirely dispense with theseparate seal ordinarily required with the cap over the seal, whichlatter is utilized after the separate seal is removed, all with-theexception of a cork' desired, be pieced instead of seamless as shown,without interference in any respect with my invention as thus fullydescribed.

I claim 1. The combination with a bottle neck provided with threads andwith an annular shoulder below the threads, of a cap containing an innersealing member for engagement with the bottle mouth and provided withthreads for engagement with the threads of the bottle neck and to passthe same for movement therebeyond when pressure is applied to the capfor compressing the said sealing member, and a connection band connectedto the lower edge of the cap and projecting inwardly beyond the bottleneck shoulder for bending into engagement with the latter to hold thecap in sealed position. a

2. The combination with a bottle neck provided with threads and with anannular shoulder below the threads, of a cap containing an inner sealingmember for engagement with the bottle mouth and provided with threadsfor engagement with the threads of the bottle neck and topass the samefor movement therebeyond when pressure is applied to the cap forcompressing the said sealing member, a connection band connected to thelower edge of the cap and proand a bead seam connecting the cap and itsextension whereby the latter may be wholly removed from the bottle andthe cap.

3. The combination with a bottle neck provided with threads and with anannular shoulder" below the threads, of a cap containing an innersealing member for engagement with the bottle mouth and provided withthreads for engagement with the threads of the' bottle neck and to passthe same for movement therebeyond when pressure is applied to the capfor compressing the said sealing member, and a connection band connectedto the lower edge of the cap and projecting inwardly beyond the bottleneck for bending into engagement with the latter to hold the cap insealed position, said band having an interfolding seam connecting itsends and having one of its ends provided with a tongue projecting fromthe seam for the purpose described.

4. The combination with a bottle neck provided with threads, of a caphaving an internal sealing member engageable with the mouth of thebottle and provided with internal sealing member .is removable fromcompressed, to hold the latter in sealed position.

5. The combination with a bottle neck provided with threads,

of a cap having an engageable with the mouth of the bottle, and providedwith threads which engage and pass the threads of the bottle neck formovement therebeyond when pressure is applied to the cap to compress thesaid sealing member, said cap and the bottleneck being provided withrelatively engaging means when the cap'is so compressed, to hold thelatter in sealed position and including a cap carried part which the capto free the latter for cooperation with the threads alone in itssubsequent use.

ALFRED L. BERNARDIN.

